Breast prosthesis

ABSTRACT

A surgically removed breast is replaced by a prosthesis which also has a foldable tab extending under the arm. The prosthesis comprises a soft cloth case filled with polyester fiber fluff, overlapping panels at the back providing access for insertion or removal of fluff. Snaps hold the prosthesis in place in a brassiere cup.

I United States Patent Den Bleyker [54] BREAST PROSTHESIS [72] Inventor:Hazel M. Den Bleyker, 445 East Hoyt Avenue, St. Paul, Minn. 5510] [22]Filed: Jan. 29, 1970 [21 Appl. No.: 6,787

[52] U.S. Cl ..3/36 [51] Int. Cl ..A6l f 1/00, A4lc 3/10 [58] Field ofSearch ..3/36; 128/479-481 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS3,516,414 6/1970 Greenough ..3/36X 3,278,947 10/1966 Silverman ..3/36

[ 1 Feb. 15, 1972 2,429,308 10/1947 Cooper ..3/36 3,348,241 10/1967Dodds 2,108,205 2/1938 Martin ..3/36

Primary Examiner-Richard A. Gaudet Assistant Examiner-Ronald L. FrinksAtlorneyRichard E. Brink [5 7] ABSTRACT A surgically removed breast isreplaced by a prosthesis which also has a foldable tab extending underthe am. The prosthesis comprises a soft cloth case filled with polyesterfiber fluff, overlapping panels at the back providing access forinsertion or removal of fluff. Snaps hold the prosthesis in place in abrassiere cup.

4 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures PATENTEBFEMS I972 3.641 .592

2 FIG. I /4 /6 INVENIOR.

HAZEL MDENBLEYKER A 7' TORNE Y BREAST PROSTHESIS BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION This invention relates to a prosthesis which simulates asurgically removed breast. v

Women who have undergone mastectomies not only suffer considerablephysical pain but also undergo severe emotional shock at the apparentloss of part of their femininity. As a result, a great deal of work hasbeen done to develop realistic prostheses which simulate the missingbreast and may extend under the arm, where muscles and lymph nodes havebeen removed. Several U.S. patents illustrate the fact that a common wayto form a prosthesis is to insert some type of lightweight filler into athin case of cloth or other material. Each of these prior art devicessuffers from disadvantages which have limited its use. Some have tendedto be hot and uncomfortable, while others have lacked breathability.Fillers often tended to harden or mat down, and removal or replacementwas inconvenient. Others tended to slip embarrassingly or to becomebulky at the top and make their artificiality apparent.

Despite the disadvantages of the prostheses just described, there hasheretofore been no better device available. The present invention isdirected to meeting this unfilled need.

SUMMARY The present invention provides a prosthesis for use bymastectomy patients which has the advantages of the best previouslyavailable prostheses without their disadvantages. The present device islight in weight, resilient, compressible, moisture vapor-transmitting,soft, nonirritating and convenient. It remains in place and does notmove within the enclosing brassiere cup, performing its desired role inan efiective yet inconspicuous manner. It is also adaptable toindividual needs for supplementary underarm paddings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING Understanding of the invention will beaided by reference to the accompanying drawing, in which like numbersrefer to like parts in the several views, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a three-quarter front view of the prosthesis of the invention,showing the manner in which it fits inside a brassiere, the latter beingshown partially in dotted lines;

FIG. 2 is a rear view of the prosthesis, with certain portions partiallybroken away in the interest of clarity;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the prosthesis taken along sectionline 3-3 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the prosthesis taken along sectionline 4-4 and looking in the direction of the arrows.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Further understanding of theinvention will be facilitated by a more detailed discussion of thepresently preferred embodiment, which is illustrative but is not to beconsidered limitative.

In the drawings the prosthesis comprises generally planoconvex, orconoidal, bust portion 10 and cushionlike tab portion 20. Bust portion10 is made up of lower front panel 11,

upper front panel 12, inner rear panel 13 and outer rear panel 14. Theoutboard edges of panels 11, 12 and 13 are stitched to the inboard edgesof tab panel 20, thus providing a convenient means for folding tab 20along a predictable line, for reasons to be disclosed hereinafter.

Panels 13 and 14 overlap, edge 13a of panel 13 extending below panel 14and edge 14a of panel 14 overlying panel 13. The entire lower edge ofpanels 13 and 14 is stitched to the lower edge of panel 11, while theentire upper edge of panels 13 and 14 is stitched to the upper edge ofpanel 12. The overlapped edges 13a and 14a define, therebetween, anopening for insertion or removal of filler 16 from the interior of bustportion 10 and/or tab portion 20. A greatly preferred material forconstructing the various panels is a highly porous soft,

strong material such as a cottoncontaining broadcloth. This materialcomes in contact with the sensitive and tender chest wall, and should befree from any hard or rough portions such as lumps, buttons, zippers,stiff seams, etc. For similar reasons, the prosthesis is formed with allseams turned toward the inside. The fabric should also be moisture vaportransmitting, so as to avoid feeling hot or sticky. The material shouldhave a sufficiently high coefficient of friction that it will notreadily slide with respect to the brassiere; a convenient way to achievea frictional surface is to include at least some cotton fibers in thefabric. Blends of cotton fibers and polyester fibers yield awash-and-wear fabric which is soft, porous, adequate in frictionalcharacter, moisture-absorbent and moisture-transmissive and does notrequire ironing.

A greatly preferred filler material is polyester fiber, e.g., that soldunder the designation Dacron flufi'. This material is light in weight,highly compressible but resilient, does not mat down, is easilywashable, and transmits moisture vapor readily. It is also cooler andmore comfortable to wear than many other commercially availableproducts.

Tab 20 is provided with an amount of filler l6 suited to the needs ofthe wearer. In a radical mastectomy, a considerable amount of axillarytissue is removed, and a correspondingly large quantity of filler 16 maybe needed. In such operations it is also common to leave a drainage tubein the underarm area, and it affords the patient a great deal ofphysical comfort to have this area padded. When desired or appropriate,however, filler 16 may be removed from the interior of tab 20, which canthen be folded under the rear of bust portion 10. This feature has alsobeen found valuable to double mastectomy patients, who may choose to usetab 20 at some times but not need it at others.

Another important aspect of the present invention is the provision ofmeans to insure that the prosthesis will remain consistently in the samelocation on the body of the wearer. Thus means are provided for thebrassiere to snugly grip the prosthesis. Small male snap fasteners l7,l8 and 19 are inconspicuously positioned at the top, bottom and sides ofbust portion 10, the female halves of these fasteners beingcomplementarily positioned on the interior of the brassiere cup. Thisarrangement insures that the top of bust portion 10 will remain firmlypressed against the body of the wearer and that it will also besurrounded by the breast cup of the brassiere, thereby preventingembarrassment such as would result from exposure of the top of bustportion 10. As shown in FIG. 4, fastener 19 at the top is attached to ashallow flange formed by top stitching, which itself functions as ameans to grip the prosthesis between the upper edge of the brassiere andthe body of the wearer, helping the prosthesis to lie flat.

What I claim is as follows:

1. A breast prosthesis which is light in weight, resilient,compressible, moisture vapor-transmitting, soft, nonirritating,conformable and has particular utility for a mastectomy patient,comprising in combination:

a thin, strong, breathable soft fabric case filled with nonmatting,washable, moisture vapor-transmitting polyester fluff, the filled casehaving a generally planoconvex breast portion, the planar surface beingintended to serve as a body-contacting portion and the convex surfacebeing intended to serve as a brassiere-contacting portion, and extendingfrom the laterally outer edge thereof a hollow fabric tab portionadapted to be either filled with polyester fluff and extended under thearm of the wearer or emptied, collapsed and folded under the planarsurface of said breast portion, the edge of the fabric forming the tabportion being stitched to the laterally outer edge of the fabric formingthe breast portion, thereby defining a line of demarcation along whichsaid tab portion can be more easily folded, the interior of said tabportion being open to the interior of said breast portion; thebody-contacting portion of said case being free from stiff or hard areasand having panels in the planar surface of said breast portion whichoverlap to close an opening through hold the prosthesis flat against thebody of the wearer.

3. The prosthesis of claim 1 wherein the holding means comprises half asnap fastener, the mating half of said fastener to be complementarilymounted on the brassiere of the wearer.

4. The prosthesis of claim 1 wherein the convex portion is defined by alower front panel and an upper front panel.

1. A breast prosthesis which is light in weight, resilient,compressible, moisture vapor-transmitting, soft, nonirritating,conformable and has particular utility for a mastectomy patient,comprising in combination: a thin, strong, breathable soft fabric casefilled with nonmatting, washable, moisture vapor-transmitting polyesterfluff, the filled case having a generaLly planoconvex breast portion,the planar surface being intended to serve as a bodycontacting portionand the convex surface being intended to serve as a brassiere-contactingportion, and extending from the laterally outer edge thereof a hollowfabric tab portion adapted to be either filled with polyester fluff andextended under the arm of the wearer or emptied, collapsed and foldedunder the planar surface of said breast portion, the edge of the fabricforming the tab portion being stitched to the laterally outer edge ofthe fabric forming the breast portion, thereby defining a line ofdemarcation along which said tab portion can be more easily folded, theinterior of said tab portion being open to the interior of said breastportion; the body-contacting portion of said case being free from stiffor hard areas and having panels in the planar surface of said breastportion which overlap to close an opening through which said fluff canbe inserted or removed; the brassiere-contacting portion of said casehaving an adequate coefficient of friction to minimize slippage betweensaid case and a brassiere; holding means on the periphery of said breastportion being provided to facilitate gripping said pad by a brassiere soas to further reduce slippage.
 2. The prosthesis of claim 1 wherein theholding means comprises a shallow flange along the upper edge, whichflange is adapted to be gripped by the upper edge of a brassiere to holdthe prosthesis flat against the body of the wearer.
 3. The prosthesis ofclaim 1 wherein the holding means comprises half a snap fastener, themating half of said fastener to be complementarily mounted on thebrassiere of the wearer.
 4. The prosthesis of claim 1 wherein the convexportion is defined by a lower front panel and an upper front panel.